In order to easily respond to design changes in the internal circuits of electrical connection boxes, they have been made from wires and cramping terminals instead of busbars formed from punched conductive metal plate. The cramping terminals connect the wires with each other as well as with external output terminals.
A wire receiving groove or guide, along which the wire is laid, is placed on an assembly board, and the wire is inserted between the wire guides or in the wire receiving groove. In a typical method, a continuous strand of wire is automatically laid by a suitable device from the starting point of the receiving groove to an end point thereof. Cramping terminals are mounted in appropriate positions for connection to the wire, and the continuous strand is cut at predetermined points to form separate circuits.
When the wire is laid, it is necessary to fix the wire to prevent longitudinal movement thereof; this has been done by inserting the leading end of the wire into a chuck disposed on the assembly board. The chuck holds the wire as it is laid on the substrate; however, it is necessary to introduce the leading end of the wire into the chuck and fix it in place and, after the completion of the wire laying, the wire has to be severed to release it from the chuck. Thus, the above prior art method requires (1) fixing the end of the wire to the chuck and (2) cutting and removing the extended portion of the wire after the wire pattern is complete. Moreover, this wastes the extended wire portion which must be cut and removed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,684,765 discloses a method for laying a wire on a base plate in which the leading end of the wire is bent downwardly, inserted into a through-hole and held therein by a processor head having a cutter blade. However, in order to provide the through-hole, the base plate must have an increased thickness. Another problem resides in the necessity of having a cutter blade for inserting the wire into the through-hole, thus complicating the apparatus.